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Tax Return Due Dates Changing

As you may be aware, the 2015 “Highway Act” accelerated due dates for some federal tax returns. The changes are effective for the 2017 filing season, or the 2016 tax year for calendar year-end filers. These modifications relate mostly to flow-through entities, including S corporations, LLCs, and partnerships that provide Schedule K-1s to their partners and shareholders.

Due dates related to individual tax returns or estimated tax payments will remain the same.

What does this mean to you? As you gather tax documents for the coming tax season, please keep these changes in mind:

Partnerships (Form 1065) — The due date for years ending in December is moved from April 15 to March 15, 2017, or the 15th day of the third month after year-end.

C Corporations (Form 1120) — The due date for 2016 calendar year returns moved from March 15 to April 15, 2017; in most cases, returns will be due on the 15th day of the fourth month after year-end. However, although the due date of these returns has been pushed back a month, we encourage clients to submit the financial information necessary to complete these returns as soon as possible.

Foreign Information Reporting — Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts Report (FBAR) (Form FinCEN 114) — This form is required for individuals and businesses with a financial interest in, or signature authority over, at least one financial account located outside of the United States, and the aggregate value of all foreign financial accounts exceeding $10,000 at any time during the calendar year reported.

This due date change is the most significant for individual taxpayers; forms are now due April 15 rather than June 30. However, for the first time, a six-month extension to Oct. 15 will be available.

Fraudulent IRS Notices

The IRS is warning taxpayers and practitioners that a new scam uses fraudulent notices on Form CP2000 to solicit money from taxpayers. The fraudulent forms look convincing, and show balances due that are small enough that taxpayers just might pay rather than arguing the point.

However, upon closer inspection, these forms have telltale signs of fraud:

• The instructions direct the taxpayer to make out a check to “I.R.S.” rather than to “United States Treasury;”
• The return address is “Austin Processing Center, P.O. Box 15264, Austin, TX 78761-5264,” which does not match the address listed on the IRS website for the Austin Processing Center.
• The notices are being sent electronically even though the IRS does not initiate contact with taxpayers by e-mail or through social media.